June 23, 2023

New Data: $15 Wage Bill To Kill 86,000 Jobs in Pennsylvania

Lawmakers in Harrisburg are proposing drastic changes to the state minimum wage. One such proposal, HB 1500, would raise the regular minimum wage up to $15.00 per hour, while also raising the tipped minimum wage to $9.00 per hour, a more-than 200 percent increase. A large majority of economic research…
May 19, 2023

New Research Finds Minimum Wages Are Still Costing Employees Jobs, Earnings

Pushes to raise minimum wages are popping up across the country – with inflationary increases as high as $19.08 per hour in West Hollywood, CA starting on July 1 and proposals for as much as $30 hourly minimum wages in places like Los Angeles. These efforts are capped by recent…
May 12, 2023

Setting the Record Straight on Bogus Claims Behind CA’s Anti-Franchisee Bill

In the California Assembly’s Appropriations Committee earlier this month, legislators heard testimony for and against AB 1228 – a bill entitled the Fast Food Franchisor Responsibility Act – which would target franchised fast food restaurants statewide by making small business owner franchisees and larger corporate brands jointly liable for…
April 7, 2023

The Fight for $15 Is Still a Bad Idea for Pennsylvania

After newly-elected Governor Josh Shapiro raised the issue in his budget address, some are renewing efforts to enact a $15 minimum wage in Pennsylvania. Activists and lawmakers have tried to push the Fight for $15 for years in the Commonwealth, but have been blocked by concerns over…
March 31, 2023

Rhode Island’s Anti-Tip Credit Bills Ignore the Realities of the State’s Restaurants

This week, the Rhode Island House Labor Committee heard public testimony regarding various minimum wage hike proposals. Two of the bills up for consideration, H 5590 and H 5928, which both seek to eliminate Rhode Island’s tip credit and raise the hourly base wage for tipped restaurant workers by nearly…
March 3, 2023

Maryland’s Anti-Tip Credit Bill Is A “Bad Economic Deal” for Tipped Workers

This week, the Maryland Senate Finance Committee heard public testimony regarding SB 803, which would eliminate Maryland’s tip credit and raise the hourly base wage for tipped restaurant workers by over 300 percent. The hearing was filled with current restaurant employees and restaurant owners who explained how the bill…
January 27, 2023

Tracking Minimum Wage Bills in 2023

Dozens of states and cities implemented scheduled minimum wage hikes on January 1st, and several more approved increases on the ballot last November. Now, lawmakers are pushing the boundaries again with even higher target minimum wage rates and adding automatic inflationary increases to existing minimum wage laws. Here is a…
January 20, 2023

Push and Pull: While Some States Seek Further Min Wage Hikes, Others Pull Back

In 2022, record-breaking inflation drilled minimum wages beyond expectations in many states and cities, as seen by new wage rates taking effect January 1 and throughout this new year. Even still, many activists and progressive lawmakers are calling for even higher rates – pushing the boundary on how high minimum…
November 4, 2022

Study: Economists Say $15 Tipped Wage Will Cost 800K Jobs, $2.2B Earnings

A new study released by the Employment Policies Institute finds state-level $15 tipped minimum wages will cost jobs and earnings for restaurant employees. In next week’s elections, voters in several states will be tasked with choosing whether or not to enact similar wage hikes for tipped employees. The study, conducted…
October 28, 2022

Minimum Wage Hikes Kill Yet Another Restaurant in 2022

The latest casualty of skyrocketing wage mandates is Deva Cafe in Modesto, CA. The popular neighborhood restaurant has been open for three decades, and owner Heather Elkins has announced it will be closing its doors permanently due to rising inflation and the upcoming minimum wage hike. She tried raising…